Free Range Cattle: How Much Space Does a Small Herd Need?

Free range cattle are cattle that are allowed to roam for food in a large area without being prevented by fences or reduced to a confined space. Actually, this definition is partially true, because the cattle are still confined in a fenced-in area (called pasture), and this area is not always large, especially if a question like “how much space does a small herd need?” should exist!

Because I had only chosen this title from a list of title suggestions and thus was unable to correct the wording, I must first explain how “outdoors” shouldn’t really apply to cattle except dairy cows. In most livestock operations, free range really only applies to poultry or pigs, not livestock. Free range cattle is a misnomer because most of the time cattle are already sent out to pasture to roam on their own in search of food without much fencing to prevent them from doing what they naturally do best. This is especially true in most beef operations (except feedlots) and is common to all cow and calf rearing / ranching operations. It should also come as no surprise that all small producers also “freely raise” their livestock on a regular basis, even without realizing it. Also, who wants to confine a small herd of cattle and have to work for them to keep feeding them all the time when they can just be on a small acreage grazing a bit?

This brings me to the ability to answer the question in this title: “How much space does a small herd of cattle need?” Now I assume this is for grazing space as it applies to the so called “free field” aspect, but sometimes you never know.

What I would like to know first are many different things, such as the following:

  • How “small” is this little flock? Does it include only two animals, or 10?
  • How big is the cattle? Are they young calves or large, mature cows?
  • What is your location For example, is it found in the rich grasslands of South Carolina or the more scattered arid grasslands of West Texas? Or is it much further north, like central Alberta or Saskatchewan?
  • What is the vegetation like? Lush or sparse? Good quality, poor quality, native grasslands, domesticated grasslands? Are the grasses in their vegetative stage or in maturity?
  • How much precipitation do you get per year or per month?
  • What is the quality of your soil and what type of soil do you have? Is it loam, sand, clay, or a mixture of any of these three? Is it alkaline, acidic, saline, etc.?
  • What type of grazing management practices do you want to implement? Are you planning to manage intensive grazing of your livestock or let them roam freely throughout the pasture area? Do you want to improve your soil and increase organic matter, or do you just want to have some cows around?

I have noticed several articles on this site where some cattle “expert” authors recommend their readers to average one to one and a half acres per cow. Truth be told, I don’t agree with those numbers. The reason is that there are too many variables at play to even consider calling 1 to 1.5 acres / cow even close to average. You see, I can see that those numbers apply to areas where grass is abundant, grazing is frequent, and you don’t see droughts or snow at any time of year. I can even see these numbers being exceeded in operations where rotational grazing is managed with great success. But when it comes to other areas where rotational grazing is impossible to do or there is simply not enough rainfall to grow as much grass as a grower would like to have as many acres allocated per animal, it is totally unreasonable and undeniably ridiculous to take those figures for granted.

The other big concern I have with those numbers is the size of the cow. I seriously question the validation of that “average” load rate when it comes to the size of the cow in question. Is that average loading rate for tiny 500 lb weight cows, or is it applicable for much larger 1600 lb beef / dairy cows? Somehow I think it’s both and neither. You see, the intake rate or the amount of grass consumed per cow per day is drastically influenced by the body weight of the bovine. A large cow will eat much more than a small cow. You do not believe me? Take the maintenance requirement of 2.5% of the body weight of a bovine in dry matter ration per day, then multiply it to different body weights of different cows. For example, a large Simmental cow will weigh around 1600 pounds. That means you are expected to consume 40 pounds of dry matter ration per day, regardless of whether it is grass or hay. Now take a 500 pound miniature cow; she will consume 12.5 pounds of dry matter serving per day. Please note that those are just maintenance requirements. Feeding values ​​differ greatly depending on the moisture content of sowing, the physiological requirements of the cow (if she is lactating, late in pregnancy, early in gestation, etc.), environmental conditions (hot or cold climate ) and the quality of feed. So when it comes to storage rate, there is no exact or even average value to give you in this article.

Therefore, the best thing you can do to determine how much grazing area is needed for your small herd is to answer all of the questions above and visit your local county extension office for information on local livestock rates for your area. Once you have that information, you can choose to store as many animals as you like. Just be careful not to over-store or store too many to overgraze your grasses too quickly. Overpopulation can mean anything from being optimal for intensive grazing to turning your pasture into a feedlot.

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